Editor’s note: This is part three of a four-part series by Dave Schedin, of CompuTrek Automotive Coaching & Training, who has more than 40 years in the automotive field and has coached shops to higher profitability since 2006.
In “The Bankable Me” part one, I shared how we could be more bankable by letting go of thinking that may be holding us back from cultivating necessary mindsets to move us forward in life and in business. In part two, I demonstrated how something as simple as pricing a battery replacement job can expose limited, fear-based or scarcity thinking that can often be the culprit in unsuccessful pricing strategies.
This installment of my “The Bankable Me” focuses on the “intangible asset,” our thought life, and how many of our thoughts run on “autopilot” in the background of our subconscious, which can throw a wrench into getting what we really want — a highly profitable automotive repair business.
Subconscious thinking has been proven to be at least 25 times more powerful than our conscious/cognitive thinking, and those thoughts are formed and developed through life experiences. It’s important to understand how your own “autopilot” — or thought life — works based on your life experiences and how it might positively or adversely affect your shop decisions, profitability and success. Former life experiences can be traumatic and cause emotional and psychological harm, such as a divorce, for example, which might also de-value one’s self worth and develop a fear of rejection.
Low self-esteem hits home in the shop when it undervalues your service and that lowers your hours/RO, despite how much you perceive yourself as a “service-oriented, friendly, kind and an attentive listener.”
Fear of rejection can lead to selling service you only know for sure your customers would buy. Instead of selling all the service you know your customer needs, you limit your sales for fear of hearing that “no,” or rejection. So while inhibitions and fear might only get you 1.5-2.0 hours/RO, confronting and changing those issues can get you to 3.5-4.0 hours/RO in preventative maintenance alone.
It’s easier said than done when your autopilot can give you every reason in the book as to why ROs aren’t higher so you don’t have to address your true selling inhibitions. A vehicle needs what it needs and it’s our role to inform our customers of their proper service and maintenance, regardless of our fear.
And when we don’t do our job thoroughly, guess who short-lived the vehicle? Guess whose customers call back after another breakdown and ask why it didn’t get fixed when the car was just in the shop?
“We can not solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.” — Albert Einstein
It’s imperative to have introspection and rewire negative thinking into positive thinking choices. Using your current level of thinking to be introspective can miss or create blindspots, so being introspective works best with the help of others.
Invest in a skilled and proven business coach or mentor who has “done the work” themselves in personal development, as I did and I help others to do. After an investment of a skilled coach in my life, it took me only 4.5 days to go from 1.67 to 3.33 hrs/RO, and the discipline of renewing my mind toward positivity maintained the increase. You can do it, too, with intention and an action plan. You’ll be happier, your customers will be happier and your shop profitability will increase as you become a better bankable you!
As the Greek philosopher Socrates once said, “Know Thyself.”
Next: THE BANKABLE ME: Part 4 – The Bankable Leader: How leading with commitment versus command fills your bank account faster.
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Dave Schedin can be reached at 800-385-0724, dave@computreksystems.com and www.computreksystems.com. He offers a complimentary 30-minute discussion.
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